The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom

What an incredible book this was. I know it attracts extremes of views, some people love it others despise it. I found this little book by accident in my library. It is quite short and I read the whole book within a couple of days. I simply think it is a lovely story and possibly one of the most important books I have read for years. When I read the book I thought it was written by an old man.

However, I find that Mitchell David Albom (Mitch) is an American best selling author, screen writer, journalist and broadcaster. His books have sold over 35m copies worldwide. He was born in Passaic, New Jersey on 23 May 1958 and educated Columbia University and Business School.

This is a story about Eddie who is a wounded war veteran. He is an old man who has lived an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park.

On his 83rd birthday he is killed in a tragic accident as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination, but an answer. In heaven, five people explain your life to you. Some you knew, others may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie’s five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his “meaningless” life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal query of why he was there. So it is only after he dies that he meets 5 people who actually show him his life had meaning.

Eddie, did not believe he had any worth. He thought his life meant nothing.

I do not want to spoil the book for anybody who has not read it. Suffice to say there is a surprise ending. You also find out that Eddie’s life did have meaning. He did his job well and always made sure the rides were safe. He looked out for the kids, his life did have real importance and great value.

One by one, unexpected characters in heaven remind him that we all live in a vast web of interconnection with other lives and that all our stories overlap. Eddie comes to understand that acts of sacrifice seemingly small or fruitless do affect others. He learns that loyalty and love matter to a degree we can never fathom.

By the end of this book I was in tears. It is definitely one of the good ones. Read it and enjoy it. I believe this book could change your outlook on life.